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General: New Numbers From PlaySpan

StraddenStradden Managing EditorMember CommonPosts: 6,696

MMORPG.com's Jon Wood uses new numbers revealed from the (legitimate) item sales site PlaySpan to make a point about putting released numbers in context.


Jon Wood

Ever since they first showed up as advertisers here at MMORPG.com, we've been getting complaints about PlaySpan. Those complaints come under the mistaken impression that the company is a gold farming outlet. They aren't. What they are, is a company that works hand in hand with game publishers to offer items that are already for sale by that company. EVE Online, for example, offers only their 30 Day Starter pack, while Atlantica Online offers in-game gold coins (the kind that is used in their item mall). Essentially, PlaySpan is just another way to get your hands on game-sanctioned products.

I don't say this as a defense of the service, and I don't say it as a shot in the arm for F2P games. Your own personal opinion on the topic is yours. The reason that I bring this up is actually because the company has released some numbers today that I found particularly interesting and thought you might too. Not only is it interesting because it's so rare to get any kind of solid number out of any company even remotely related to MMOs these days, but also because is gives us an interesting cross section of who is using an international service like this one.

Read New Numbers From PlaySpan.

Cheers,
Jon Wood
Managing Editor
MMORPG.com

Comments

  • AmazingAveryAmazingAvery Age of Conan AdvocateMember UncommonPosts: 7,188

    Interesting read Jon, I would of thought the UK would of been in the top 5 I remember a different report showing the British like to spend a lot on legitimate microtransactions.



  • HerodesHerodes Member UncommonPosts: 1,494

    Uh, most customers come from Germany. Either people are too rich here, or the school system went downhill.

    I know, this is not about gold farmers and such. It just reminds me of an old friend (policeman with house+family), who bought a shadow knight at Ebay, just to play a bit in his spare-time.

  • NetzokoNetzoko Member Posts: 1,271

    Interesting.

    When they say 22 dollars average spent, is that per month or per year?

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  • DorkenDorken Member Posts: 4

    Im still trying to understand what John is trying to point out here.   Why should I care if its US or EU custimors that spend more money in a gameshop ?  And what has that to do with Xfire?  Why isn't he just comparing it to how the raiting is built up on his own MMORPG.COM website ?  

    Xfire gives out very good statistics about certain things.  You can read into them to much.  But.. they still show what they are supposed to show.  That is... how much xfire users are playing the games in the xfire listings.  Its a relyable statistic.  And in most cases they are accurate when compared to the information that we are given about sub numbers and trends of player base. 

  • ryuga81ryuga81 Member UncommonPosts: 351

    How did Italy end up there? We don't even have a decent DSL coverage and we're some 10 years behind other EU countries in internet tech... :P

  • NifaNifa Member Posts: 324

    Originally posted by Dorken

    Im still trying to understand what John is trying to point out here.   

     

    I think, perhaps, the following excerpt may be the point:

    Do these numbers provide concrete proof, for example, that Americans as a whole spend almost 20% more on these kinds of items than anyone else in the world? No, but it does go at least some distance towards suggesting it.

    Many of the posters here that rail hardest against cash shops are Americans.  Still, the numbers from PlaySpan suggest that we Americans have the deepest pockets (or at least are willing to spend the most money for our digital shinies) when it comes to virtual goods.

    Personally, so long as the cash shops aren't selling items that affect gameplay (stat boosts, XP bonus, things of that nature) and are only offering "fluff" (cosmetic) items, I don't have a problem with them.  It is cash shops that sell items that are not available through normal gameplay that give those willing to spend real life money a clear advantage over those unwilling to spend real life money (apart from a normal subscription fee, of course) that I take issue with.

    Firebrand Art

    "You are obviously confusing a mature rating with actual maturity." -Asherman

    Maybe MMO is not your genre, go play Modern Warfare...or something you can be all twitchy...and rank up all night. This is seriously getting tired. -Ranyr

  • bobfishbobfish Member UncommonPosts: 1,679

    These figures are from Playspan's business, many established markets have other solutions than Playspan, as they're primarily an American company, I wouldn't really put any weight behind the non-American figures.

  • NightCloakNightCloak Member UncommonPosts: 452

    Why wouldn't you put weight behind non-American numbers?

    If of ever 100 users that spend money on the website and 29 of them are German, why is that not to be considered?

    The locality or target demographic makes no difference on the legitimacy of the actual results.

    The only issue is that it doesn't give numbers. So that could be 100 people or 100,000 people.

    That and I beleive the $$$ spent is total for the account.

  • NifaNifa Member Posts: 324

    Originally posted by NightCloak

    Why wouldn't you put weight behind non-American numbers?

    If of ever 100 users that spend money on the website and 29 of them are German, why is that not to be considered?

    The locality or target demographic makes no difference on the legitimacy of the actual results.

     

    Precisely.  NightCloak sums it up well.  20-some-odd percent is 20-some-odd percent, regardless of where the company is located or what the target demographic of the customer is.

    Considering, too, that PlaySpan is a legitimate company operating as a publisher-licensed third party vendor offering only those items which can be legitimately obtained via a publisher's website, one can consider that some game publishers do not necessarily work and play well with EU banks and bank cards, which is what makes a service such as PlaySpan necessary.  Allowing a third-party vendor to take on the responsibility of processing overseas payments keeps EU customers happy and prevents an imbalance between NA/EU customers (which I have seen with companies such as Sony and others before when there have been some sort of problems in processing EU bank card payments - which I don't understand the issue there and won't pretend I do, I have only seen the problem crop up a few times), then it becomes necessary to "put weight" behind the non-American numbers.

    Firebrand Art

    "You are obviously confusing a mature rating with actual maturity." -Asherman

    Maybe MMO is not your genre, go play Modern Warfare...or something you can be all twitchy...and rank up all night. This is seriously getting tired. -Ranyr

  • ScotScot Member LegendaryPosts: 24,478

    I am very glad to see that my fellow countrymen and women in the UK are not on these lists. Perhaps we have a little more sense than most? :D

  • viddsterviddster Member UncommonPosts: 220

    Originally posted by Scot


    I am very glad to see that my fellow countrymen and women in the UK are not on these lists. Perhaps we have a little more sense than most? :D

    Either that or we are just all completely broke. :)

    image
  • PhryPhry Member LegendaryPosts: 11,004

    Originally posted by viddster

    Originally posted by Scot



    I am very glad to see that my fellow countrymen and women in the UK are not on these lists. Perhaps we have a little more sense than most? :D

    Either that or we are just all completely broke. :)

    We're Broke..  mostly..  which means we only pay for the things we really want.. image

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